


Same Moon, Same Stars

by softboystanley



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King, Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Jealous Mike, Mike and Richie are Cousins, Multi, Theyre not, bill stan and mike were lowkey dating, georgie died in a car accident, georgies dead but it wasnt pennywise related, it all happened, its still the 80s, mike and will fight lil bit, mike goes to derry and meets the losers club, mike thinks richie and will are a thing, mileven is minor, pennywise doesnt exist but the upside down does, richie parents are nice, same with ben and bev excpet, season 2 debacle, slightly jealous eddie, slow burn cause everyones an idiot, the whole will upside down, they were highkey dating, theyre all like 17
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-15 03:31:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19287232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softboystanley/pseuds/softboystanley
Summary: When Will moves to Maine, Mike will do anything to see him again. Even fighting his cousin for Will.





	1. For Sale

**Author's Note:**

> ha lmao this started as a vent fic but turned into so much more 
> 
> imma try to get this all out before s3 but its unknown if i can actually do that 
> 
> this is based on the theory that will moves away from hawkins but i was like what if he went to derry

“God, I could really go for a round of D&D right now, huh Mike?” Will suggested when they were sitting in Mike’s basement, just the two of them. It was a hot, humid mid-summer night and they were sitting on the couch drinking ice tea and watching MTV but not paying much attention to it. 

 

“Nah, I’m not into that anymore.” Mike said, not looking up from the magazine he was reading. On the cover was a photo of Molly Ringwald, who El was obsessed with. She must have gotten him into all those teen magazine things. 

 

“Oh, come on! Just one round? For old time’s sake?” Will pleaded. 

 

“We’re not kids anymore!” Mike snapped suddenly, startling Will. “I mean, what did you think? We’re just gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives!” 

 

“I just wanted one last round before…” Will trailed off, looking to the floor sadly, debating getting up and leaving. 

 

“Before what, Will? We grow up? We find out that life isn’t all sunshine and rainbows and D&D isn’t everything? Before you get taken back to the Upside Down again?” 

 

“Mike!” Will yelled, his brain screaming for Mike to stop. Tears streamed down Will’s face. Whether they were from Mike’s comments or the mention of the Upside Down triggering his PTSD, Will didn’t know.”Please, stop.” 

 

“Oh shit, fuck, Will, oh goddamnit. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean that. Here, come sit down.” Mike said, the angry version of him the Will was just exposed to slipping away and the normal Mike,  _ his _ Mike, returned. 

 

“No, no. I think I should just go home.” Will stood up from the couch and started to walk up the stairs. 

 

“Will, wait please. I’m really sorry.” 

 

“I hope whatever is going on in your life works out for you. Even if you won’t tell me what has you so mad.” Will muttered. 

 

“Will, wait. Will I at least see you tomorrow?” Mike asked but Will was already gone. Mike thought about running after him and telling him the one thing that had been bouncing around in his mind for years. Mike thought about racing to Will, professing his feelings for him and kissing him in the rain like they were in a movie. But Mike didn’t move. He let Will walk away and right out of Mike’s life. 

 

\-----------------------------------------------------

 

Mike and the rest of the group biked over to Will’s house after he didn’t show up to the arcade like they had planned. However, when he got there, Mike immediately realized something was off. 

 

All of the furniture that had been on the Byers’s deck was gone. The lights were out in the house and Joyce’s car was gone. Mike peered in one of the windows and didn’t see any of their furniture. 

 

“Hey, check it out!” Lucas called from further up the Byers’s driveway. Mike walked over and when he saw what Lucas was looking at, his heart dropped. 

 

It was a for sale sign with the word ‘SOLD’ written over it in big letters. 

 

“Hopper mentioned something about this to me, but I didn’t think they would do it.” El said. “He told me that Joyce didn’t feel that her family was safe.” 

 

Mike ran his hand through his hair. He recalled the night before when Will had gotten upset over his mention of the Upside Down. They had talked about it before in casual conversation and no reaction came out of Will but there was definitely one last night.  _ Maybe the Now Memories came back?  _

 

“Did Hopper say where Joyce was planning to move?” Dustin asked.

 

“Maine.” 

 

“Maine? That’s miles away!” Max said. 

 

“Did he say where?” Mike continued to look down at the for sale sign. 

 

“No. I could probably ask though.” El shrugged. 

 

“Why wouldn’t Will tell us he was moving?” 

 

“Didn’t want to deal with goodbyes, maybe?” Lucas suggested. 

 

“Let’s ride over to El’s house and she can ask Hopper. I have a cousin in Maine. Town called Derry.” Mike said. 

 

And so the group rode, except for El, who rode on the back of Max’s bike, for she didn’t have her own. 

 

“Mike, you okay? You haven’t said much.” Max said, after El had gone inside. 

 

“Yeah, just...hasn’t really hit me yet. That he’s gone.” 

 

“Hey, he’s not gone. It’s like you said, you’ve got a cousin in Maine.” Dustin pointed out. 

 

“Yeah but he’s not gonna come back.” Mike said. He was thinking about telling the rest of the party about the night before but he was scared they’d yell at him for how he treated Will. 

 

“He’s in Derry! Same place as your cousin!” El emerged from the cabin, a smile plastered across her face as she stood next to Mike. She intertwined their hands and Mike blushed. He didn’t know why because he and El had done it thousands of times, but something was different. 

 

“Why are you smiling?” Lucas asked. 

 

“Cause now Mike can go see him and ask why he left.” El beamed. 

 

“If my mom’ll let me go. I’ve never gone up to Maine by myself. How would I even get there?” 

 

“Train.” Everyone responded at once. 

 

“I’ll ask her tonight. You guys wanna go to the clearing?” 

 

The clearing was a new placed found by the Party. It was on the outskirts of town, in the very back of Wilkerson’s property so it was technically trespassing but they didn’t care. It was a beautiful spot where they could watch the sky rise and fall surrounded by flowers. 

 

There was a hum of acceptance across the group and they were off. Mike didn’t like how casual everyone was about Will moving away. Will was gone. And they were going to the clearing like it never even happened. It was partially Mike’s fault they went to the clearing at all, but it still hadn’t quite sunken in on him yet that his best friend was gone. 

 

No more late nights at Will’s, no more English class jokes, no more cramming sessions, no more Castle Byers. Wait, did they leave Castle Byers up? Maybe Mike could go back and check. 

 

After they had all said their goodbyes for the night, and El had rode off on Max’s bike, Mike diverged from his typical ride home. He rose down Will’s street, almost believing that he was gonna get to see Will again, before coming up on Will’s empty house. His heart sunk. 

 

Mike parked his bike and dumped it in the driveway. He went around back and saw the familiar outline of Castle Byers. The sign was missing, presumably taken by Will to Maine, and all of the furniture was gone, but it was still there. Will was still there, in a way. 

  
  


\------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


“Hey mom, do you remember my cousin Richie?” Mike asked, when he and his mom were sitting on the couch while E.T. played on the TV. 

 

“Yes, Mike. I remember him.” 

 

“Could I spend summer up with him, Aunt Maggie and Uncle Went?” 

 

“I don’t know sweetie, you’d have to call them.” 

 

“Can I call them?” 

 

“Sure, just make sure Nancy isn’t on the phone first.” 

 

Mike ran into the kitchen and picked up the phone. He put it to his ear and heard Nancy talking to Steve. 

 

“Sorry Nance, need the phone for something.” Mike said into the phone and hung up. He looked on the fridge and saw a slightly smudged number with Aunt Maggie’s name next to it. 

 

“Hello?” A woman’s voice spoke into the phone, presumably Aunt Maggie’s. 

 

“Hi, it’s Mike, uh, your nephew.” 

 

“Oh, Mike! It’s so nice to hear from you. How are you doing?” 

 

“I’m good. I was calling to ask if I could stay up with you this summer. I haven’t seen you guys in a while and it would be nice to see you.” 

 

“Oh, of course. You can stay up all of July if you would like.” 

 

“Uh, hold on let me ask my mom.” Mike ran back into the living room. “Can I stay with Aunt Maggie for all of July?” 

 

“Sure. Be sure you thank her.” 

 

“I will. Thanks Mom!” Mike dashed back into the kitchen and picked up the phone again. 

 

“She said it was okay.” 

 

“How about you take the train up on July 1st?” 

 

“Sounds great! Thanks Aunt Maggie.” 

 

“No problem, Mike. We look forward to seeing you!” 

 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Mike had been on the train for what felt like eternities. He had just started to drift off when the train screeched to a halt and he nearly fell out of his seat. 

 

“We have arrived in Derry, Maine.” The speaker boomed throughout the train. Mike gathered his things and walked off the train. 

 

The platform was small because Derry itself was a small town. There were maybe 15 people at the station. Mike looked around, searching the crowd for Aunt Maggie, Uncle Went or Richie. When he saw none he went and sat down on a bench next to a person reading a newspaper. 

 

“Busy day at Derry station, ay?” The person asked, face shielded by the newspaper. They seemed to speak with a sort of Chicago accent that puzzled Mike slightly. 

 

“Guess so.” Mike responded, not wanting to engage in a conversation with a stranger. 

 

“Looking for someone special?” The stranger asked once more. 

 

“Just relatives.” 

 

“Well, congratulations, Mikey-boy, you found ‘em.” The stranger said. The accent had completely dropped from their voice and they knew his name. 

 

“Wha-” Before Mike could even question it, the stranger tossed the newspaper aside and revealed their face. It was Richie. He was staring at Mike with a giant smile plastered on his face, large glasses making his eyes look huge. Overall, Mike and Richie looked exactly the same, except for Richie’s glasses and their different haircuts. 

 

“Oh cuz, it’s been so long!” Richie threw his arms over Mike and wrapped him in a bear hug.

 

Mike squirmed uncomfortably under Richie’s grip. “It’s great to see you too, Rich.” 

 

“You gotta come meet my friends. You know what? I’ll take you to ‘em right now.” 

 

“Alright, Rich.” Mike smiled. He was actually excited to meet Richie’s friends. He was going to need someone to hang out with while he was here. 

 

Richie took Mike’s bags and walked him out to the car. They caught up on the car ride over to the place Richie called ‘the quarry’. 

 

When they got there, Mike saw a small clearing with a cliff overlooking a large pond. There was a group of six people sitting and laughing. 

 

“One order of Trashmouth!” Richie yelled over to his friends, which was greeted with a chorus of groans. 

 

A small boy fell back onto the grass. “I liked it better while you were gone.” 

 

“Oh spaghetti, you don’t mean that.” Richie ran over to his friends, leaving Mike standing awkwardly by Richie’s car. 

 

“Did I hit my head on the rock or are there two Richies?” A girl with red hair asked. She looked like a cooler version of Max.  _ No offense, Max _ , Mike thought. 

 

“Oh, that’s Mike. I kidnapped him.” Richie shrugged and went back to tormenting that small boy. 

 

Mike waved awkwardly. 

 

“Great, now we have two Mikes.” Another voice said. 

 

“Are we gonna introduce ourselves or continue to confuse the poor guy?” Someone else said. 

 

“Hi, I’m Bill.” One of them said. He was tall and slender and had red hair that swooshed down in front of his eyes. 

 

“I’m Ben.” Ben was shorter and rounder than Bill, and his smile lit up his face. 

 

“Stan.” Stan shook Mike’s hand with a firm grip. He was taller than Bill with wild curls that flew around his face. 

 

The cooler version of Max walked over to Mike. “Beverly. But everyone calls me Bev.” 

 

“I’m Eddie.” The smaller boy from earlier smiled up at Mike and shook his hand. “But Richie calls me a whole number of things.” 

 

“Damn right, Eds!” 

 

“That’s not my name!” 

 

“I’m Mike, as well. I like to think of myself as the only functioning member of this group.” 

 

“Hey! I’m standing right here!” Stan said, and Mike threw an arm around his shoulder. 

 

“Well I guess it’s just you and me, then baby.” 

 

“Wow, it be like that then, huh?” Bill asked. 

 

“Hey guys!” A voice said from behind Mike.  _ Was that? No, it couldn’t be.  _ “Sorry I’m late! My mom wanted help unpacking.” 

 

Mike turned around slowly and standing at the top of the hill was Will. 


	2. A Night At The Quarry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey so like i got a tumblr so totally go follow me @softboy-stanley 
> 
> dont worry about will im not gonna introduce a pennywise thing i just like references

“Mike, oh my god, what are you doing here?”  Will said. He ran over to Mike and hugged him. 

 

“I came to find you. You kinda left without saying goodbye. And I couldn’t have our last talk be what it was.” 

 

“What are you talking about? Our last talk?” 

 

_ Did he seriously not remember?  _

 

“Why’d you move?” Mike asked, quick to change the topic. “Were your now memories coming back?” 

 

Will bit his lip, eyes looking past Mike and to the group of friends who had gathered behind them. 

 

“I’ll explain everything later, I promise.” Will whispered before running over to the group. 

 

“Didn’t tell me you knew ol’ Will the Wise, Mikey.” Richie said and Mike blinked. Will the Wise, that was Will’s D&D character. Did Will tell Richie about D&D? It felt so private, something that was exclusive to party members only. 

 

“Yeah, he’s a friend.” Will looked up at Richie, smiling wide. Eddie looked down at the ground. 

 

“Small world.” Stan mumbled. 

 

“So we gonna do this or what?” Bill asked, sounding bored. 

 

“Do what?” Mike looked around. 

 

“Swimming. In the quarry. Did you not tell him, Rich?” 

 

“Must have slipped my mind.” Richie smiled down at Will and Mike’s heart skipped a beat. 

 

_ Was Will into Richie?  _

 

“Just like my 8th birthday party.” Stan asked, raising an eyebrow at Richie. 

 

“Will you let that go! It was nine years ago, Stanney!” Richie defended. 

 

Mike watched Richie walk away, bickering with Stan, Will still tucked under Richie’s arm, giggling silently. Mike looked at them longingly before sensing a presence next to him. He looked over and saw the shorter boy from earlier, Eddie was his name. 

 

“Wanna go swim?” Eddie looked up at Mike. 

 

“I mean, sure.”

 

“Alright then, what are you waiting for?” Eddie grabbed Mike’s hand and lead him down to the quarry. Eddie, thankfully, took a different path to the water than Richie and Will, who decided to jump off the cliff. Mike had done the whole ‘jumping off a cliff’ thing and wasn’t really a fan. He could see Will jump, however. He and Richie were hand-in-hand as they soared down to the water. Mike tried his hardest to ignore his jealousy and focus on what Eddie was saying. 

 

“So, you’re from Hawkins?” He asked. 

 

“Uh, yeah.” 

 

“You two have friends back there or was it just you and him.” 

 

“No we have friends. And a spot kinda like this.” 

 

“Oh that’s cool.” It was just then that Mike realized Eddie was leading him away from the quarry and into the woods. 

 

“Hey, where are we going?” Eddie dropped Mike’s hand and turned around. 

 

“I’m guessing you’re into Will?” He asked. 

 

“What? I,uh...no, that’s crazy I’m not-he’s my friend.” 

 

“You can drop the straight person act, I’m into Richie.” 

 

“I’m not into Will. It’s not like that.” 

 

“Oh come on, I can practically sense it. Like a gay radar.” 

 

“Gaydar?” Mike raised an eyebrow. 

 

“That’s actually pretty catchy. Anyway don’t lie. I saw the way you looked at him when he and Richie went off hand in hand.” 

 

“Do you think he likes Richie?” 

 

“I hope not. How the fuck am I supposed to compete with that? He’s so tiny and cute.” 

 

“You’re like 4’11.” Mike pointed out. 

 

“5’2. And a half. It doesn’t even matter. I’ve never seen Richie look at anyone like that before.” 

 

“So..what do we do?” 

 

“I don’t know.” 

 

Mike sighed. “I came all the way out here for nothing.” 

 

“You came up here to tell Will how you felt?” 

 

“I guess, yeah.” Mike’s eyes widened at a sudden realization. 

 

“What?” Eddie said. 

 

“Holy shit. I have to break up with El.” 

 

“El? Who’s El? Your boyfriend?” 

 

“Girlfriend. Shit. I can’t do anything till Will knows I’m single.” 

 

“You’re gonna break up with her over the phone?” 

 

“Why is that bad?” 

 

“The worst.” 

 

“Well what am I supposed to do? Write her a letter?” 

 

“That’s true. Let her down gently though. Is she nice?” 

 

“The nicest.” Mike was hesitant to say more about El, seeing as she was still on the run from Brenner and Mike didn’t know if Will had told them about the whole Upside Down thing. 

 

“Sweet. We should get back now, so they don’t wonder where we are.” 

 

“Yeah.” 

 

Eddie led Mike back over to the quarry. The group of them, which Mike had discovered their name to be the ‘losers club’, played around in the quarry until the sunset and the moon began to rise. 

 

“Ay, Mikey!” Richie called. “My folks’ll kill us if we aren’t back soon.” 

 

“Can I just talk to him before you go?” Will asked. 

 

“Go for it. Just be sure to use protection!” Richie joked. 

 

“That’s fucking disgusting, Rich.” Eddie shook his head. 

 

“I’ll show you what else is fucking disgusting.” Mike heard Eddie shriek with laughter as Will and Mike walked away from the quarry. 

 

“Did your now memories come back? Are you okay? Is the shadow monster threatening you? I swear if I have to go to the Upside Down to kick some Demogorgon ass, I will-” 

 

“No it’s not that. Well, I guess maybe it is, but I had no say. It was all my mom. She didn’t think I was safe.” 

 

“But you are. You have me and El and Lucas and Dustin and Max and Hopper. Were all here to protect you. Especially me.” 

 

“I tried to tell her, but I guess it’s too late now. And Derry isn’t that bad. It’s got everything Hawkins has, minus the portal to another world.”

 

“Yeah but what if it has something worse. Like an evil clown or some shit!” 

 

This made Will giggle and Mike’s stomach did flips better than Simone Biles. 

 

“You should come by tomorrow. My mom would love to see you.” 

 

“Where do you live?” 

 

“Third house on Neibolt street.” 

 

“I’ll be there.” 

 

“Totally tubular.” Will smiled. “See you then!”

 

Mike watched as Will ran off back to his house. He walked back over to where the rest of the losers club was drying off. 

 

“Where’s Will?” Bill asked. 

 

“I killed him.” Mike deadpanned. 

 

“No! Not Will the Wise!” Richie pretended to faint like in a soap opera. 

 

“Come on dipshit, your parents are gonna kill us.” 

 

“Well, losers, it’s been a blast but the idiot is beckoning me home.” Richie said in a horrible British accent. 

 

“See you tomorrow, Mike! Hope you die in your sleep, Richie!” Stan called. 

 

“You don’t mean that, baby!” Richie laughed before running to catch up with Mike. 

 

“Pretty good group of kids, huh, Mikey? I need to find you another nickname cause Mikey’s already taken. How ‘bout Wheeler? Oh, or-” 

 

“Wheeler’s pretty good.” 

 

“Alright then, Wheeler. Your wish is my command. Can I just say, I’m really happy you’re here. It’s been  _ years _ since I saw you. This is gonna be such a cool month!” 

 

“Damn right, Richie!” Mike tried his best not to hide how jealous he was. “When we get home, could I use your phone? I have to call someone.” 

 

“Sure thing.” 

 

They hoped in Richie’s car and jammed to Should I Stay or Should I Go, which only made Mike a little bit sad, it was Will’s favorite song after all. When they arrived at Richie’s place and Mike got his things set up, he called El. 

 

“Sheriff Hopper speaking. Who’s this?” 

 

“Uh, hey Hop. It’s Mike.” 

 

“Let me guess? You wanna talk to El?” 

 

“If I can.” 

 

“Sure thing, kid. El! Your boyfriend’s calling!” Mike cringed at that word.  _ Boyfriend _ . It felt so definitive. 

 

“Hey, Mike. How’s Derry?” 

 

“It’s good. It’s really nice. I found Will.”

 

“You did?” 

 

“Yeah, turns out he started hanging with my cousin.” 

 

“Did you find out why he moved?” 

 

“Joyce didn’t think he was safe in Hawkins. But that’s not why I’m calling.” 

 

“Oh?” Mike could hear the worry in her voice. She had been through a lot. 

 

“I think we need to talk.” 

 

“About?” 

 

“I wanna break up.” Mike bit his tongue so hard he could taste blood. 

 

“I want to, too.” 

 

“Really?” 

 

“I just think I misunderstood our relationship when we first met.”

 

“Me too. I was looking for a hole to fill when Will went missing and you were there. And then I just kept trying to shove you into my life when things were tense cause I needed a distraction and it wasn’t fair. I’m sorry.” 

 

“I’m sorry, too. When we met I had just left the lab and you were the first person who was nice to me so I clung to you. But I hope we can still be friends.”

 

“Of course. You probably understand me better than anyone.” 

 

“Now that we’re broken up are you gonna go date Will?” El whispered so Hopper wouldn’t hear. 

 

“What!” Mike yelled before lowering his voice when he heard Richie start to walk out of his room. “I don’t like Will.” 

 

“Mike, I was raised in a lab but I’m not an idiot. I can see how you look at him.” 

 

“Jesus Christ. You know you’re the second person to tell me that today.” 

 

“Really? Who was the first?” 

 

“Some kid who hangs with my cousin. Eddie.” 

 

“Well, Eddie seems pretty smart. Just like me. Now, are you gonna tell Will or not?” 

 

“What are you crazy? No way!”

 

“I know you can’t see me but I wanna let you know I rolled my eyes.” 

 

“Shut up. I think he’s into my cousin anyway.” 

 

“Oo, some competition. Are you gonna duel him for Will’s heart? Maybe fight him in a D&D battle?”

 

“You think you're funny, huh?” 

 

“Oh, I think I’m hilarious.” 

 

“I’ll talk to you later, El.

 

“ _ Will _ do, Mike. Have fun.” 

 


	3. Jealousy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> stan and mike is such a duo 
> 
> LIKE 5 DAYS TILL S3 AHHHH

The next morning, after Mike had had breakfast with his relatives, he went over to Neibolt street where Will said he lived. 

  
  


The first house on Neibolt street was a church. The second was some run down house that looked like it hadn’t been lived in for years. Mike swore he something moving in one of the  windows however, so he quickened his pace to get to Will’s. 

 

Will’s new house was larger than his one in Hawkins. It didn’t have much of a backyard, though, so a new Castle Byers couldn’t be built. There was a small stone pathway that lead up to the front door. 

 

Mike rung the doorbell and heard some shuffling behind the door. 

 

“You can leave the packages at the door!” Mike heard Joyce call. 

 

“That’s, uh, not why I’m here.” Mike said. 

 

“Do I have to sign for it?” Joyce asked, opening the door. Her face changed when she saw it was Mike. “Oh Mike, what a pleasant surprise. You followed us all the way to Derry, huh?” 

 

“Far from it, Mrs. Byers. I was visiting family and it turns out my cousin befriended Will.” 

 

“Wow, what are the chances? Why don’t you come in? Excuse the mess of boxes we still haven’t quite unpacked yet.” 

 

The entranceway of the house immediately lead up a staircase and Mike could see a bathroom at the top of the stairs. To the left, it opened into a den area that lead into a kitchen. To the right of the stairs there was a door that led into the garage. 

 

“Will’s upstairs in his room, so you can head on up there. If you two need anything just let me know.” 

 

“Okay, thank you, Mrs. Byers.” 

 

Mike ascended the stairs and walked into Will’s room. It wasn’t quite fully decorated yet; there was no sheets on the bed and the desk was piled high with boxes. One thing, however, caught Mike’s eye. Over Will’s bed was a sign made out of wood. It was the Castle Byers sign. Mike smiled to himself. 

 

“I see you found your way in.” Will said, standing in the door frame of his room. Mike twirled around and came face to face with Will. They were so close, Mike could see the details in Will’s eyes.  _ Jesus Christ, Wheeler, keep it together.  _ Will blushed and brushed past Mike. 

 

“Yeah, sorry. I was just looking at the sign.” 

 

“Good old Castle Byers.” Will sat on his bed and looked up at the sign. “Remember all the games we used to play? Way before D&D and all that other kid shit.”

 

“It wasn’t kid shit. D&D, I mean. Do you still have some of your stuff, maybe we could play.” 

 

“Nah, I’m not really into that anymore.” Will said and Mike could hear his words being spit back at him.  _ Did he remember? _

 

“Listen, Will, if this is about our fight I want to apologize.” 

 

“No, it’s fine. You said what you felt, and that’s okay.” 

 

Silence fell in between the two of them. 

 

“I broke up with El!” Mike blurted out. Mike had wanted to let Will know he was single but he expected a much smoother delivery. 

 

“Oh. I’m sorry?”

 

“No, it was my idea. Well not my idea, we just both felt that we were better off friends.” 

 

“So who’s next for Michael Wheeler then? Max?” 

 

“God no, you know she and Lucas have a thing.” 

 

“Maybe Bev.” 

 

_ Bev? Who the fuck was Bev? She was the red haired girl from the quarry, right?  _

 

“No. I don’t know. Hoping I meet the right one.” 

 

“Maybe you already have.” Will mumbled under his breath. 

 

_ WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN? _

 

“Hm.” Mike agreed. “What about you Will? Anyone special?” 

 

“Yeah, I guess so.” 

 

That got Mike’s attention. In a flash, he had rolled over and was looking Will in the eye. 

 

“Who?” 

 

“Well.” Will smiled. “They’re super tall, and they have black hair styled super cute.” 

 

Mike almost died. Sincerely. He was super tall and had black hair! Will was talking about him! Then, Mike almost died, again. But for a different reason. Will could have been talking about Richie, too. They were identical, after all.

 

“Oh, cool.” Mike said, trying to not give away any particular emotion. 

 

“You should join me and my mom for lunch.” 

 

“No I have a, uh, thing with the Toziers.” Mike did not have a thing with the Toziers. He just thought if he spent one more minute with Will he might explode. 

 

“Oh. Well, come to the quarry tonight. Everyone’s gonna go.” 

 

“Sure thing. I’ll see you, Will.” 

 

“See ya, Mike.” 

 

Mike left Will’s house, without saying goodbye to Mrs. Byers. He walked down the street adjacent to Neibolt, Jackson Street. He was looking at all the houses when he suddenly heard his name being called. 

 

“Hey, Mike!” He whirled around, expecting Will, for some reason and was instead met with one of the other kids from last night. The curly-haired one.  _ Jesus, why was Mike so bad at remembering these people’s names?  _

 

“Oh, hey….” 

 

“Stan, remember? From the quarry.” 

 

“Oh, right. Stan.” Mike snapped his fingers. “I’m horrible with names, sorry.” 

 

“No biggie. Wanna come over to my place?”

 

“Sure.” Mike had nothing else today and he wasn’t quite ready to see Richie’s face yet. 

 

“It’s this one over here.” Stan showed him over to his house. They walked through the front door and up the stairs until they reached a landing. Mike stopped, thinking that this was where Stan’s room was but Stan walked over to the attic door. He pulled it down and the stairs collapsed to the floor. 

 

“You sleep in the attic?” 

 

“We don’t have an attic. Just my room.” Stan said, looking back at Mike as he climbed up the stairs. Mike climbed up after him. 

 

The attic, or Stan’s room, had wood walls and beams on the ceiling. Christmas lights were wrapped around each beam. It was a huge room. Stan had a giant bed, probably a King. He even had a fireplace. 

 

“Doesn’t it get cold in the winter?” 

 

“That’s what the fireplace is for.” 

 

“How’d your parents even let you do this? How’d you get all this stuff, I mean it’s so cool up here.” 

 

“Birthdays. Although it did look weird when my aunt was told that her Jewish nephew wanted Christmas lights.” 

 

“Can I tell you something? I know we met like yesterday but I need to talk to someone.” 

 

“Go for it.” 

 

“Okay. So, uh, I like Will. More than a friend.” 

 

“Don’t freak, I’m gay, too. Hell, most of the losers are gay. Except for Bev and Ben, those lovebirds have been at it since second grade.” 

 

“Oh really?” 

 

“Yeah we all saw through your “I’m totally a straight person” act. Eddie especially. I’m guessing he took you aside to tell you that he’s got the hots for Richie?” 

 

“Yeah. No offense, but if everyone’s gay, why don’t you guys date?” 

 

“Oh trust me, we are. Most of us anyway. Richie and Eddie have a weird unspoken thing and every time someone brings it up they have no idea what we’re talking about. It’s stupid.” 

 

“Who are you dating?” 

 

“Bill ‘n’ Mike. Buy one idiot get another one free.” Stan laughed at his own joke. “That was funny. I’m telling them that one.” 

 

“Do you think Richie might like Will?”

 

Now this made Stan laugh. He fell off the bed actually, body shaking with laughter. He wiped a tear away from his eye before addressing Mike. 

 

“Okay, I’m sorry. It’s just… Richie’s my best friend and the thought of him liking someone other than Eddie is, laughable, no offense. I remember in first grade he first started liking Eddie and he didn’t know what to do. He came to me and I didn’t know what to do either. He wrote him a note telling him to get out of the school and I’m pretty sure Eddie still has that note. Eddie’s been told who did it and it remains a tale of legend in the losers club.” 

 

“Wow. So there’s no chance of him…?”

 

“God no. The reason why it looks like he does is because he’s trying to make Eddie jealous. He does it all the time. There was this one party we went to and Richie would not stop flirting. Anything that moved got hit on. It’s a toxic thing to do and I’ve tried to tell him but…” 

 

Mike nodded. “Why doesn’t Richie just tell him? I mean, he must know that Eddie feels the same way, right?” 

 

“Cause Richie is an idiot who won’t listen to reason. I’ve tried to tell him about it but he’s always like ‘are you sure, though, Stan?’ so I just gave up.” 

 

“Wow. I knew Richie was stubborn but damn.” 

 

“Oh, shit!” Stan said, hopping off his bed and walking over to a long mirror that was in the corner. 

 

“What?” 

 

“I’m late for a meeting with Bill and Mike. God, this is rude but do you think you could show yourself out? No one else is home so you don’t have to worry about that.” 

 

“Yeah, sure it’s fine.” 

 

“I’m sorry. I’ll see you later, though.” 

 

“Yup. Tell Bill and Mike I said hi.” 

 

Stan nodded and Mike left down the attic stairs. He walked down the street, hot sun making him sweat. So, Richie couldn’t like Will. But Will could like Richie. Mike had to make a move. Fast. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> feedback is always appreciated
> 
> follow me on tumblr @softboy-stanley


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